China Smartphone Maker Xiaomi Apologizes For Unauthorized Data Access 64
SpzToid writes Following up an earlier story here on Slashdot, now Xiaomi has apologized for collecting private data from its customers. From the article: "Xiaomi Inc said it had upgraded its operating system to ensure users knew it was collecting data from their address books after a report by a computer security firm said the Chinese budget smartphone maker was taking personal data without permission. The privately held company said it had fixed a loophole in its cloud messaging system that had triggered the unauthorized data transfer and that the operating system upgrade had been rolled out on Sunday. The issue was highlighted last week in a blog post by security firm F-Secure Oyg. In a lengthy blogpost on Google Plus, Xiaomi Vice President Hugo Barra apologized for the unauthorized data collection and said the company only collects phone numbers in users' address books to see if the users are online."
Re:Apologies not accepted (Score:4, Interesting)
Cyanogenmod allows you to "accept" apps that ask for all sorts of non-core access, and then revoke it afterwards. The app can attempt to access your addressbook, but it will get blocked.
Of course I havent had to use it, because I generally dont run into issues with apps asking for insane levels of access. Maybe its the apps you're using?
Re:Apologies not accepted (Score:2, Interesting)
Pretty much any 'social media' app now wants access to pretty much everything. I know several people who've stuck with an old version of the Facebook app before it started demanding almost complete control over the device. Other mobile operating systems let you deny Facebook access to your camera or microphone, whereas Android included that feature in a recen OS release... and then removed it.
And, no, I'm not going to install some random other OS on the tablet when I can just buy a different device which includes that functionality in the first place.
More flies with honey... (Score:5, Interesting)
Why is it considered okay to do this until you get caught? Then you apologize? How about not stealing the information in the first place for starters. Fuckwads!
When an institution or a person does something right, I find it useful to commend them for it.
There may be many other things they can do right in the future, that they are doing wrong now. And there may be things done in the past that were profoundly wrong.
But they've still done a good thing.
In the United States, communications professionals (and the people they coach, like our politicians) avoid admitting when they are wrong, avoid even *engaging* in serious discussion, precisely because people so easily latch onto any words acknowledging another position and turn it into a sound byte. Attacking people who do the right thing for not doing more encourages them *not* to do the right thing in the first place.
Here, a company admitted it was wrong and apologized. It may or may not be disinformation to distract us from spying on behalf of the Chinese Government; and the company may or may not still be doing things we consider wrong. But the company's message was the right one, and they deserve praise for taking responsibility for a foul-up and acting to correct it.